Artificial limb



(No Model.)

2 Sheets-Sheet 1.

A. L. WOODLAND. ARTIFIGIAL LIMB.

No. 598,458. Patented Feb. 1, 1898.

E} 4 F y. 5.

(No MrIdel.) 2 Sheets-Sheet 2.

A. L. WOODLAND.

ARTIFICIAL LIMB.

No. 598,458 r Patented Feb. 1, 1898. .1 1, 2 .12.

QR h v 5440mm W MW MIA WWMM AMOS LINCOLN WOODLAND, or MIDLAND, OOLORADO.

ARTIFICIAL I.IIvI B.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 598,458, dated February 1, 1898.

Application filed April 5,1897. Serial No. 630,815. (No model.)

legs; and the objects of my improvements are, first, to construct an artificialleg which will be light, durable, easyto operate, noiseless, and require little or no oiling of joints;

second, to construct a foot which will perfectl'y adjust itself to the different positions required in natural walking and to make the foot light, durable, and without metal springs or unnatural sound when coming in contact with the floor or sidewalk when walking; third, to make suspenders by which an artificial leg can be secured to the body of the wearer and the leg always held in a natural position without being affected by the varying positions of the body; fourth, to provide a shield attachment to such suspenders by which the underclothing of the wearer is protect-ed and held in place; fifth, to provide for attaching the pants or skirts of the wearer to the suspenders which support the artificial leg, by which both suspenders and pants or skirts are kept in position sixth, to provide.

an adjusting apparatus for the compensation of wear and to prevent rattling in the joints and to so arrange this mechanism that the socket in the thigh-piece will admit of as long a stump as possible without having to make the knee-joint lower than it should be; seventh, to make knee-springs that can be adjusted to suit the ideas of the wearer; eighth, to provide a roller and frame for attaching the leg to the suspenders constructed so that in case the roller becomes worn it can be readily detached and bushed or a new roller put in its place. I attain these objects by means of the mechanism illustrated in the accompanymg two sheets of drawings, which I are made a part of this specification.

Figure l is an exterior side view of the leg and foot constructed in accordance with my invention. Fig. 2 is an exterior side view of the center of the leg and foot as they appear when the weight is taken off of the leg preparatory to taking an advancing step. Fig. 4 is a similar view, but sectional only about the knee, showing the position of the leg and foot, stop-rod, and springs when they have been moved forward in making a step, the weight resting on the heel. Fig. 5 is a similar view showing the position of the leg, foot, stop-rod, and springs adjusted to a sit ting posture. Fig. 6 is an exterior side elevation of thefoot as it appears before the rubber springs and the leather straps have been placed in position and attached to the instep, also showing the shape of the ankle where it joins on the shank. Fig. 7 is an exterior side elevation of the foot complete ready to be secured to the shank. Fig. 8 is a detailed side view of the roller and frame for attaching the suspenders to the leg. Fig. 9 is an enlarged exterior longitudinal view of the device forming the knee-joint and adjusting apparatus. Fig. 10 is a sectional view of Fig. 9, taken through the points indicated by the dotted line 1 and 2. Fig. ll is a sectional side view of the center of the knee between the dotted lines 3 and i, Fig. 1, with the parts in the same position'as shown in Fig. 3 and giving a view of the parts shown in Fig. 10, and in addition thereto a sectional end view of the joint and adjusting apparatus for govering the action of the inferior part of the leg and a longitudinal exterior view of the stop-rod, springs, bushings, drum,washer, and nuts connected therewith, also a longitudinal sectional side elevation of the bridge. Fig. 12 is a side view of the joint and adj usting apparatus for governing the action of the inferior part of the leg and a side view of the straps for supporting and attaching such joint to the thigh-piece and a longitudinal vertical view of the stop-rod with nuts attached, also a sectional view of the washer on such stop-rod and drum and showing the position of the spring in the drum. Fig. 12 is a longitudinal vertical edge view of one of roe ' is screwed in the plate I).

the straps shown in Fig. 12. Fig. 12 is an end View of the nut to be used on the stoprod. Fig. 13 is a view of the top of the drum through which the stop-rod passes. Fig. 14 is a longitudinal apex View of the bridge and cushion thereon. Fig. 15 shows a part of the suspenders at the back for supporting the artificial leg and how theparts for supporting the pants or the skirts are attached thereto.

Fig. 1.6 shows the same as Fig. 15 in the front instead of at the back.- Fig. 17 is a front View of the entire suspender used in supporting an artificial leg, also the shield for protecting and keeping the clothes in place.

Similar characters of reference indicate similar parts in all the views.

Fig. 1 shows the exterior side of a leg and foot constructed in accordance with my invention for a thigh amputation, in which A and B are outside shells for the upper and inferior parts of the leg, respectively, made of wood, rubber, paper, or other suitable material. C is a hollow piece of the same material forming the upper and instep part of the foot.

iand n are the heel andtoe of the foot, made of the same material'as O.

The thigh-piece A, shank b, instep c, toepiece n, and heel-piece i, if made of wood, should be covered with rawhide.

A isa groove or notch cut in both sides of the shell A, and is deep enough to allow the free passage of the ends of the suspenders R R (see Fig. 17) between the metal plate 5 and a shorter metal plate I) at the bottom of the groove a.

l) is the outside or long plate of the rollerframe, (see Fig. 8,) and b the inside or short plate. These plates are riveted together above and below the roller 0 and far enough apart to admit the roller. Both plates have a hole in the center to admit shaft cl, which passes through the long plate I) and the roller 0 and The long plate I) has holes for screws near either end for attaching the roller and frame to the leg.

A recess a is cut vertically in the thighshell A across the groove Ct large enough to receive the plate b and deep enough to receive plate 17 and the roller 0, so that the outside of plate I) will be even with the exterior surface of the shell A and plate I) will be even with the bottom of the groove 61-. The roller 0 is made of wood and is boiled or soaked in oil, so that it requires no oiling when in use. I The roller 0 revolves on the shaft d. The rollers c a, secured, as above described, in the grooves a a on either side of the leg, serve to adjustthe suspenders, which pass under-them, to the varying positions of the body. a

The thigh-shell A is connected to the inferior part of the leg by means of strong metal straps e e, which are securely fastened, by means of screws, rivets, or small bolts, on each side of the upper exterior surface of the shell 13. These straps have an eye in their upper sec tion, through which passes the rod f, as can be more fully seen by reference to Fig. 9 and the parts marked 6 e and f f. The straps e 2 rest firmly against the ends of the wooden kneebolt 1' and are held there by the nut f being screwed on the rod f. The purpose of havin g the straps e 6 brought in firm contact with the bolt 4" is to force the knee-bolt r to turn in the metal shell 8. I

I is a hole cut through the shell B into the cavity P, so that a wrench can be introduced when it is necessary to adjust the nuts N.

I11 my invention of a combined leg and foot there is no ankle-joint; but as a substitute for such joint I make a highly-flexible foot, which serves all the purposes of an anklejoint without using any complex mechanism. In Fig. 1 this foot is shown as it appears when the wearer is standing upright. .The weight is principally on the ball ofthe foot, thereby preventing treacherous bending of the kneejoint. The construction of the foot will be fully explained in connection-with Figs. 6 and 7, and in the same connection Fig. 2 will be explained.

In Fig. 3 it will be seen that inside of the shells A and B there are cavities O and P. The upper part of the cavity 0 is made to neatly fit the sides of thestump, and the lower section of the cavity is made as large as is consistent with strength and durability in the shell A, or the cavity 0 may be made as large as is consistent with strength and durability in the shell A and a leather socket be made to fit the stump and secured in the shell A. The cavity P in the inferior part of the leg is as large as is consistent with strength and durability in the shell B.

The knee-joint is constructed by making a hole through the shell A at the knee from one side to the other large enough to receive the hollow metal shell 3. Also a hole is made to extend from the lower end of the cavity-O through the shell A at the end of the knee, in which hole the shank t is firmly screwed from the cavity 0. The shank t is hollow, and

the upper section of the hole is smooth and somewhat larger than the lower end section. The large and smooth portion is for the reception of the short round shaft 1;. The small hole at the lower end of the shank t is threaded to receive the set-screw to. (See Fig. 10.) Attached to the upper end of the shank t is an oval collar t, large enough to encircle the knee-bolt r, the metal shell 8, and allow these parts to be adjusted by a slight vertical movement. The sides of the collar t are straight for a short distance on both sides of the center to allowthe semicircular 'u 1 room to move up and down inside of it. The semicircular metal shell 8.

back end of this piece has a concave groove cut across it horizontally about the center,

' them, as above described, the space j corresponds to the shape of the rubber spring K, which spring is inserted in the space between the pieces n and C, and the toe-piece n is brought up in proper position and the strap Zfastened to the instep O. The rubber spring J is next inserted in the holes made by the concave grooves across the bottom of the piece 0 and the end of the piece 1'. The heel-piece 1' is next raised in position and the strap h fastened to the piece 0.

I prefer applying the springs J and K in accordance with the weight of the wearer. A heavy person requires full springs, as shown in the drawings, and a light person a lighter spring, and in order to adjust the foot to such a person the rubber spring K is cut off at the top, so that it fills the space j only to the top of the grooves in the toe-piece n and piece 0. The end of the spring J is also cut off, making the spring lighter and more easily compressed. In all cases the rubber springs J and K must be large enough to hold the toe and heel down in place and allow them to move upward only when considerable pressure rests upon them. The back part of the rubber K serves as a cushion for the ball of the foot.

If the foot be made of wood, the grain should run lengthwise of the foot and the top of the piece 0 cut as shown in Fig. 6 and the lower end of the shank B be made to correspond. In connectingthe foot to the Fig. 1 when the wearer stands erect,'and as the top of the leg is moved forward the heel rises from the floor and the weight falls upon the toe and the rubber spring K gives and allows the toe-piece n to close up toward the instep C, as shown in Fig. 2. When the weight is taken off of the foot preparatory to taking an advancing step, the foot assumes the position shown in Fig. 3. As the foot is advanced a step the heel first comes in conp the suspenders which support the leg, and

R R are buttons sewed or riveted. to the suspenders, and to these the upper ends of the pants or the skirt supporters are buttoned. The pants or skirt supporters are constructed of two pieces of elastic web S S which have aleather buttonhole in their upper'ends for the reception of the buttonsR B. These Webs are joined together at the lower end similar to the ordinary suspender, and to them are connected webs or straps, as ordinarily used in supporting the pants at the back. One of the elastic webs S S is made shorter than the other, so that their lower ends will meet in the center of the back and not at one side,

as they would if both were the same length.

The suspenders R R extend down in the grooves a a and around the rollers c c, as shown in Fig. 17. The back and front of the suspenders are alike in general construction.

In Fig. 16 the construction of the front of the suspenders R R is shown together with the front supports R R for the pants or skirts and the buttons R PP, by which such supports are attached to the suspenders R R. The pants or skirt supportersR R are made like an ordinary suspender, except that they have a leather buttonhole at the upper end to receive the buttons R R The pants or skirt supporters are attached to the suspenders R R in order to keep the latter in place and to make one pair of suspenders answer all purposes as near as possible.

The suspenders R R are crossed and riveted together at their juncture both behind andin front at the point S, above where they pass around the wooden rollers c c in the grooves a a. The suspenders are crossed and fastened together in order that the leg may be kept in proper position when the body is moved from side to side or one shoulder is lowered more than the other. If they were not so crossed and fastened together, the lowering of one shoulder more than the other would let the leg swing in or out, according to which of the shoulders was lowered, and this would be truewhether the suspenders were crossed or not, but the suspenders being riveted together the leg is held in position as long as either one of the suspenders is kept tight, The parts of the suspenders which pass over the back go down through the grooves a or, around the wooden rollers c c, and come up to the buckles VV, where they are fastened by means of these to the parts of the suspenders coming down in front of the body. The buckles V V serve to tighten or loosen the suspenders, as may be required from'tiine to time, to keep the leg at the proper height or to detach the suspenders from the leg. In detaching the leg and suspenders from the wearer it is not necessary to un buckle any of the buckles, because the suspenders are easily slipped over the head of the wearer after the pants or skirts have been loosenedfrom the suspenders and unbuttoned preparatory to undressing. The parts of the suspenders R R from the buckles V V. up the front, over the shoulders, and down the back to a corresponding point behind are made of leather, English web, elastic web, or any suitable material, but the remaining part of the suspenders is made of leather, which may be either flat or round. If round, there should be grooves in the rollers c c to receive them.

The suspenders R R both before and behind pass down over leather shields, made as shown by T, Fig. 17, the lower end of such shields being attached to the shell A by means of a screw having play enough in the hole through the shield to allow the shield to move laterally, as required. A leather strap U, riveted or sewed at each end near the top of the shield T, serves to keep the shields in place when the suspenders have been passed through between the strap U and the shield T. The shield T serves to protect the clothing from the wear of the suspenders passing over them, and also serves to keep the clothing from working up and getting in bunches and rolls from the action of the suspenders against them.

Having described my invention and pointed out what'I consider to be its special points of merit, what I claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

1. The combination in an artificial leg, foot and support of the suspenders R R crossed and riveted before and behind with the thighshell A having grooves a, a and plates 1) and h riveted together, said plates having shaft 65 passing through their centers carrying rollers c, c communicating with the said grooves, all substantially as set forth.

2. The combination in an artificial leg, foot and support of the pan-taloon or skirt sup porters S S and R R having straps at their lower end for securing the pants or skirts, and leather buttonholes at the upper end of the said supporters with the suspendersRR having buttons R R and R R adapted to said supporters, substantially as shown for the purpose specified.

3. In an artificial leg, foot and support the combination of the thigh-shell A having the metal shell 5 secured in the knee and a hole through the end from the bottom of the cavity O with the oval collar 15 encircling the shell .9, and attached to the hollow threaded shank if, such shank having in its upper inner section theshort round shaft o attached to the semicircular collar 1;, and in its lower inner threaded section the set-screw a, substantially as described.

4:. The combination in an artificial leg, foot and support of the hollow wooden knee-bolt 0" which has been soaked or boiled in oil, and having metal bands on each end and working in the metal shells and semicircular collar 2;, with the shank B having the straps e, e secured to the shank B said straps having eyes in their upper section for the reception of the rod f which passes through said straps and through the wooden bolt 1' and secured by the nut fbeing screwed on the rod f, all substantially as set forth.

5. The combination in an artificial leg, foot and support of the straps 10,20 secured to the back part of the thigh-shell A with the hollow wooden bolt q, havingshort shaft XV passing through it, and the leather washers q and straps w, w secured by the nut WV being screwed on the said shaft W, substantially as described.

6. The combination in an artificial leg, foot and support of the oval collar 00 with the hollow shaft 00, round shaft 1 collar y, stop-rod z, nut D, springs E and M, bushings E, E, washer F, drum L, nuts N, bridge G, rubber cushions H and H substantially as described and for the purpose set forth.

7 The combination in an artificial leg, foot and support of the shell B with the insteppiece 0, teat g, sole m, heel-piece 2', toe-piece a, rubber springs J and K, substantially as described and for the purpose set forth.

AMOS LINCOLN WOODLAND. Witnesses:

HERBERT HUNTER, A. T. MODILL. 

